


Namesake

by Perro (Gadhar)



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Steve has thoughts, Tony fumbles for words
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-23
Updated: 2014-01-23
Packaged: 2018-01-09 17:03:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1148592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gadhar/pseuds/Perro
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve gets a snuggle bear of his own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Namesake

He watched it spin, the blur of gray and brown, focusing hard and trying to separate the two. It's just a ceiling fan, spinning so fast and yet not moving all over the place, like a controlled explosion...like his life. It's not that Steve wasn't happy where he was, he liked being an Avenger, liked fitting in, liked helping people, and he loved having the friends he did. But when he's solid and bright on the inside, he's broken and dark on the inside. 

He's happy, it's just...there's still everything he's lost. 

It loomed in the back of his mind, in the periphery of his vision, faded and obscured but not forgotten. An almost fleeting reminder that he only catches on his worst of days.  

Like today. 

They didn't lose anybody, no one was hurt, there wasn't some big battle or even a small one. Today  the Avengers were just lounging about the tower doing their own thing, they weren't heroes right now.  

They were people. 

He was just a person. 

He was just Steve Rogers. 

And Steve Rogers thinks too damn much.  

That's why today is  one of the worst. He's already busted at least 3 bags in the gym, already torn his knuckles, already ate twice his weight in food (much to the approval of Thor), already watched far more CSI than he should in one day and already sketched an entire notebooks worth. It's not even halfway through the day and there isn't much left to do. He could go for a run, but he doesn't have the will. 

Instead, he lays on his bed, watching the ceiling fan spin, thinking too much and not doing enough. 

That's when the dreaded knock comes. 

That's the thing about the Avengers. They all know of pain, of loss, and of the need to be alone, but they also know when they need to be in each other's face, not letting any teammate wallow in dark thoughts for too long. Steve appreciated it, he did, but he also liked deciding on his own when to leave dark thoughts. 

"Come in." The door swung open, slowly, and Steve watched as Tony stumbled in, not from exhaustion but from uncertainty.  

The billionaire wasn't as worse for wear as Steve would've thought. Tony had been secluded in his workshop for a number of days. The last anyone saw of him was for a brief respite from his work so that he could refill on coffee. Natasha saw him then, and the way she had described him, Steve would've expected Tony to be passed out on the stairs up from his workshop, rather than here in Steve's room. 

Tony shifted his weight nervously, biting on the bottom of his lip as he held something behind his back. His eyes searched all over the room, seemingly cataloging and analysing, looking everywhere but at Steve. 

"What is it, Tony?" Steve hadn't meant to snap, hadn't realized he even did, but the way Tony jumped, shuffling back a step and tensing, maybe Steve's mood had slipped through his walls. 

"I- um-I...in the workshop...and...you in here and....Here." Tony's words tumbled from his lips so fast Steve only really heard the last word. He snorted, sitting up when he realized what Tony was holding out. 

It was a bear, a teddy bear, actually. A cute thing, no doubt about it, perfect for children to clutch tightly to their chests and sleep with, or drag around to places and share experiences, to call their best friend and name. 

  It was a strange thing to see a grown man carrying around. 

"Is that a bear?" 

Tony lowered the animal slightly, gazing over at Steve with his eyes squinted. "Well duh, obviously Rogers."  

Steve frowned, bristling slightly at the barbed remark.  

"It's...yours." Tony's voice dropped again, as though he was whispering, and his face disappeared behind the bear again as he brought it back up.  

Steve frowned even more, taking the bear from Tony's hands and rubbing an ear with his thumb. It's brown arms were stretched out, reaching for him, and the crystal blue of it's eyes were particularly inviting.  

It was a little creepy. 

"Um...thanks?" 

"I made it. It gives hugs." 

"Don't all bears 'give' hugs?" That was the purpose of a teddy bear right? To be hugged and offer comfort? 

Tony's hands appeared from out of his pockets where he had shamefully shoved them away, they flew through the air now, gesturing wildly as Tony's mouth rocketed off, his discomfort all but disappearing. "It's not an ordinary bear, it's a snuggle bear, completely different. The sensors register heat signatures and pulse rates, muscles contractions and other things, and it's function is to determine when and if people need hugs and then give them. The motors are small and quiet, invisible almost, and the fabric is made from the same thing as my body suits, like a second skin, then there's cotton and other various fabrics over it for maximum cuddle effect and softness. It's a very high functioning piece of technology and it doesn't just get hugged, it hugs back." 

"Um...what?" 

"Nevermind. I just...I made it for you okay. I thought you could use one." Tony's hands snuck back into his pockets, and he studied an interesting spot on the floor. 

"I'm a grown man, Tony." 

"So? Just...do what you want okay, give it a name, trash it, whatever. I just wanted you to have something nice." Tony sounded defeated and he rushed through his sentence before backing out of the room, never looking up again. 

Steve watched the departure silently before turning his gaze back to the bear, turning it over in his hands. It was soft. 

Did Tony say it had sensors? 

Steve didn't pretend to understand half of what Tony said, but now he wished he had understood, if only to figure out why exactly Tony had given him a bear.  He felt bad, realizing now and a bit too late that he had offended Tony, even though Steve was just really confused and hadn't meant to. There was another conversation he messed up with the engineer, add another tack to the scoreboard. 

The bear still had it's arms stretched out, wider now, and he seemed to be migrating towards Steve's neck. 

Was it moving? 

"O...kay." Steve yanked the bear back, almost forcefully, he was holding it himself yet it seemed...reluctant?...to move. He brought it back to the bed with him, laying down with it sitting on his chest. 

The bear's arms stretched downward now, whole body lenaing forward and Steve sucked in a breath. 

It had moved, it was a robot. Leave it to Tony to make a robot bear. 

Steve let it go, smiling despite himelf, when the bear came the last stretch forward, it's arm locking around his neck tightly but still comfortably. Tony had made _him_ a bear that hugged. That actually _hugged_. 

Steve grinned and brought his arms around the bear, closing his eyes and brushing his nose along the ear.  It felt good. It was just a bear but it was so soft, so cuddly, and Steve hadn't realized how much he missed having something, someone to hold.  

He almost laughed when he heard it, the slight intake of breath from beyond the door and the soft but heavy breathing that followed it. "I'm going to name you Anthony, okay?" He asked the bear. Steve didn't expect an answer but the bear's eyes seemed to sparkle, almost like an answer, and Steve nodded his head once. 

 "It's a good name." Steve whispered, knowing the bear's namesake could hear him. 

**Author's Note:**

> Not as fluffy or amusing as my friend Calacious' Bartony, but hey I do what I can.  
> There wasn't suppose to be any Stony in here, but honestly, it probably slipped in at the end there. Total accident.


End file.
